Buying a gaming PC

MattBlah

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I'm looking for some advice on buying a PC just for gaming. This is something I have been wanting to do for a while, but having no prior knowledge it has been a bit daunting.

I did buy an Alienware Steam Machine 18 months back, thinking this would be the easy solution, but as it is Linux based I can't play most of the games I am interested in.

I pretty much just need something basic and ready to go, that will run Steam and play most games. I'm mostly interested in arcade games, like the Cave shooters, so it doesn't have to be super powered.

Any advice on a relatively cheap and hassle free option?
 

RAZO

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Building a PC is pretty straight forward. If I could do it, you could do it Matt. It will save you money and allow you to build something to your liking. It all depends on you and how far you want to take it. If your planning on doing 4k gaming then your going to need a decent cpu, decent gpu, and 4k monitor. If your happy gaming @ 1080p than you should be able to build a nice rig for under $1000.
 

MattBlah

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Thanks guys. I thought that may be the case, but I am a complete noob. I guess I'll have to do some research.

I really have no need for 4k, so something low to mid range would do. I was hoping something in the £500 range, but maybe that's a bit optimistic.
 

RAZO

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Thanks guys. I thought that may be the case, but I am a complete noob. I guess I'll have to do some research.

I really have no need for 4k, so something low to mid range would do. I was hoping something in the £500 range, but maybe that's a bit optimistic.

Some guys here could probably help you build a cheap quailty rig. Me, I always try to over compensate so that my rig could last me 4+ years without doing any major upgrades like cpu, gpu, etc. My Secondary Rig that's at my parents house is running on a older Amd FX-8370 stock cpu and GTX 780ti and it's still able to run everything I throw at it at 60fps 1080p.
 

MattBlah

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When I say I am a noob at this stuff I really mean it. I'm perfectly good software wise, it's just hardware that I am clueless about.

I see all these cheap ones on eBay like below. What exactly would something like that be able to run? Would that handle Steam and Cave shooters? Or are they completely worthless?



Sorry for my complete ignorance on this subject.
 

Tripredacus

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Why do you need a case with a window on the side of it? Are you buying it for show or for using?

I spent about $1000 on my computer. Many used parts. You don't need top of the line. To figure out what you need, find a game you really want to play (one that came out in the past 1-2 years) and look at the recommended specs. Use that as your baseline. The concerns are CPU and video card. Pick a board that works with the CPU you need. Spend $200-300 on a video card. Don't be an idiot and pay more for a video card than you would a XRGB-Mini.
 

julencin2000

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I'm in the business of a 1080p PC, mostly because I only use Macs and you only find nice games for windows. Talking about windows in the cases, I was watching this video yesterday about Deadmau5's house and oh man, the LAN room and those custom cases

https://youtu.be/dBiqFNNfudA?t=6m5s

It's bookmarked just to that video section. Drooled all over it. Those small form factor boxes is what I would like to have, maybe a little more discreet.
 
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Dr Shroom

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When I say I am a noob at this stuff I really mean it. I'm perfectly good software wise, it's just hardware that I am clueless about.

I see all these cheap ones on eBay like below. What exactly would something like that be able to run? Would that handle Steam and Cave shooters? Or are they completely worthless?



Sorry for my complete ignorance on this subject.

Worthless, bad CPU, tiny HDD. If you want to be on the safe side, invest in an Intel i7 and Geforce 1060/1070/1080 setup at least. https://www.alternate.co.uk/PC/PC-Configurator/ lets you easily pick your parts step by step.

500 quid will only get you outdated old shit.
 
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MattBlah

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Why do you need a case with a window on the side of it? Are you buying it for show or for using?

I don't give a shit what it looks like. That was just an example of a cheap one on eBay. I assumed they were probably worthless, but thought I'd check.

I think I probably need to do a lot more research and spend a bit more on something that is going to last.

Thanks for the links, I will have a look at them all when I have a chance.
 

RAZO

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I agree with Shroom, you don't want to go too cheap on your CPU, GPU, and HD. 500gb isn't much, Windows alone will take a nice chunk of that. Let's not even talk about how much space some of these newer games take up and other stuff like Complete Mame setups which you might want to run. Having a nice case that offers adequate cooling is a big plus as well.
 

ChuChu Flamingo

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Definitely spend a little more on a good cpu and psu. GPUs get outdated way faster than CPUs do, so follow Tripredacus advice.
 

cdamm

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i ended up buying this when it turned out it was cheaper than building one myself. This is a pretty tremendous sub $1k budget gaming rig.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/474127/G221_Desktop_Computer

The sale price i got on it was $700, but i haven seen it cheaper than $800 since. the powerspec company is the house brand for micro center (small computer chain here in the states). They are builds with all off the shelf parts. Pretty much all the stuff in my computer was stuff i was looking at anyway for a self build. im finding a bunch of prebuilt machines that are cheaper than building it yourself.

i'd recommend going with an i5 unless you are doing a lot of audio/ video work too and need the extra power of an i7. the i5 is a pretty spectacular processor and gives a ton of bang for the buck.

the problem you are going to run into is a shortage and subsequent price increase on gpu's due to the crypto mining folk.
 
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Cousin_Itt

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Not sure if U.K. Has a microcenter equivalent, but MC has good deals on used/open box deals. Maybe buy a used system and throw the savings toward a decent gpu/monitor setup. A couple months ago I picked up a used Alienware laptop at my local pawnshop for $600. 2015 15 r2. Win 10 i7-4710hq, 16gb ram, gtx 980m. Not top of the line by any means, but something decent and portable I could take to a friends place if needed.

Edited due to mistyped on some specs. Typing this out on a tiny iphone
 
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Gamefan

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MattBlah - Your best bet is to build yourself a rig that will last at least five years. Save up and spend no less that $1K if you can. PC gaming is very enjoyable as long as you have the right hardware. While I love playing in 4K, this is purely optional. The focus should be 1080p/60 or 1440p/60. As others have said, opt for an i7. I run a 4790K and it still blasts through games.
 

Chaotic Mind

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As a guy who knows a Lot about PC hardware I was first gonna say to just install Windows 10 on the steam box but looking good at the specs I'm starting to wonder if that is smart. Then again you did say this is to play low end games on that need Windows and DX.

I have a free option for you. Some time back I managed to find a copy of Windows 10 LTSB that is already activated. If you want to just install Windows on the steam machine then I can link to the download I made for the installer.
 

MattBlah

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As a guy who knows a Lot about PC hardware I was first gonna say to just install Windows 10 on the steam box but looking good at the specs I'm starting to wonder if that is smart. Then again you did say this is to play low end games on that need Windows and DX.

I have a free option for you. Some time back I managed to find a copy of Windows 10 LTSB that is already activated. If you want to just install Windows on the steam machine then I can link to the download I made for the installer.

That could be a good option to get me started. I did look into that, but wasn't sure exactly what I had to do. I really am bad at this stuff. Would it just be a download that I put on a USB stick and plug into the Steam machine? Any help would be really appreciated :)
 

Chaotic Mind

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That could be a good option to get me started. I did look into that, but wasn't sure exactly what I had to do. I really am bad at this stuff. Would it just be a download that I put on a USB stick and plug into the Steam machine? Any help would be really appreciated :)

OK. Here is what is needed. First off you need to get the Windows 10 LTSB image. As I said, I have a link. I uploaded it to the Mega site myself so I can tell you the link is clean.

https://mega.nz/#!dmpy0BRb!LZD9K7VzPNvujtWRrNtK70y2hbC5aWGULVSVqzlj1P4

Anyone who is good at checking downloads can look it over to be sure if you want to confirm my claim since I am new here.

After you get the download done you will need to get it put on an 8GB USB drive or burn to a DVD. Easiest way to do that is with the official Microsoft tool.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/windows-usb-dvd-download-tool

Install that, run, point it to the ISO image from the Mega link, find your target device whether a USB drive or a DVD, and let it run. Once done you can then boot the machine with the USB drive or DVD in it and boot from the drive. Install windows normally and when it asks what version you want to install there will be 2 options. USe the second one as that has the KMS Pico key already in it to be activated once installed. Once done installing remove the USB or DVD and done.

Enjoy the Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB version that has none of that windows 10 bloatware shit on it.
 

MattBlah

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OK. Here is what is needed. First off you need to get the Windows 10 LTSB image. As I said, I have a link. I uploaded it to the Mega site myself so I can tell you the link is clean.

https://mega.nz/#!dmpy0BRb!LZD9K7VzPNvujtWRrNtK70y2hbC5aWGULVSVqzlj1P4

Anyone who is good at checking downloads can look it over to be sure if you want to confirm my claim since I am new here.

After you get the download done you will need to get it put on an 8GB USB drive or burn to a DVD. Easiest way to do that is with the official Microsoft tool.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/windows-usb-dvd-download-tool

Install that, run, point it to the ISO image from the Mega link, find your target device whether a USB drive or a DVD, and let it run. Once done you can then boot the machine with the USB drive or DVD in it and boot from the drive. Install windows normally and when it asks what version you want to install there will be 2 options. USe the second one as that has the KMS Pico key already in it to be activated once installed. Once done installing remove the USB or DVD and done.

Enjoy the Windows 10 Enterprise LTSB version that has none of that windows 10 bloatware shit on it.

Thanks, Chaotic Mind. I really appreciate that. I will give it a try when I have time and let you know how it goes.
 

Chaotic Mind

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Thanks, Chaotic Mind. I really appreciate that. I will give it a try when I have time and let you know how it goes.

I did forget one thing. The official Windows tool is a Microsoft one and thus will only work on a Windows PC. IF you are running Linux or OSX then it will not work and other tools will be needed. I can find those if needed.
 

MattBlah

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I did forget one thing. The official Windows tool is a Microsoft one and thus will only work on a Windows PC. IF you are running Linux or OSX then it will not work and other tools will be needed. I can find those if needed.

Is that the tool to create the USB drive required? That's fine, I have a Windows laptop that I can do that part on. So then I should be able to plug the created USB drive straight into the Steam Machine that is running Linux, press F12 on startup and select the drive?
 
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